Maniera 02 Anne Holtrop: A table, a Lamp and a door Handle

Anne Holtrop’s work varies from spatial temporary models and pavilions to extensive public buildings. For instance, over the past several years, the Anne Holtrop Studio has designed the Museum Fort Vechten near Utrecht, and the National Pavilion of Bahrein for the world exhibition in Milan as well as for the Venice Architecture Biennial.

The starting point of Anne Holtrop’s work is mostly existing materials or shapes that initially, and in itself, have nothing to do with architecture, to then develop these into something architectural. Both the handling and the (re)-interpretation of these forms and materials provide the architectural aspect.

The new Barbar furniture series designed by Anne Holtrop is named after Bahrein’s Barbar Temble, an archaeological site located in the village of Barbar, and considered to be part of the Dilmun culture. The most recent of the three Barbar temples was rediscovered by a Danish archaeological team in 1954. A further two temples were discovered on the site with the oldest dating back to 3000 BC. The temples were built of limestone blocks, believed to have been carved out from Jidda Island.

The series consists of two tables, two lamps and a door handle. The tabletops and legs of the tables and the hoods of the lamps are incomplete forms, cut-outs of an abstract drawing based on the Barbar temples. The tables are made entirely from Italian silver travertine. A table lamp is made out of cast aluminium and cast glass. The shade of the floor lamp is made out of paper, handmade by the original Japanese manufacturer of Isamu Noguchi’s Akari Light Sculptures, as a tribute to the master.